Microsoft’s attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard for $69 billion has been blocked by Britain.

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Microsoft attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard

Britain’s largest competition regulator has moved to block Microsoft’s acquisition of video game publisher Activision Blizzard, in a painful blow to the US tech giant.

Microsoft announced its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard in January 2022 for $ 69 billion, in one of the largest deals the video game sector has seen so far.

Microsoft’s rivals raised objections to the deal because they were worried that it might enable Microsoft to dominate the $200 billion gaming market. They were especially troubled by the possibility that Microsoft could prevent Call of Duty, a popular game owned by Activision, from being released on certain platforms.

Sony has expressed concern regarding Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision. Specifically, Sony fears that Microsoft may eventually make Call of Duty exclusive to Xbox.